Aria

"Princess Aria, can we pretty please eat cake during Lunch Period today?"

I glanced down to see tiny fingers curled expectantly over the edge of my desk, a puff of curly hair, and big, brown eyes that could barely see over the top, staring at me with a pleading gaze. I giggled to myself as Suri strained onto her tiptoes, trying her best to maintain eye contact despite her tiny stature. 

"Oh, sweetie..." I cooed, unable to wipe the smile off of my face at her adorable actions. I set my pen down and stood from my seated position behind the desk, where I was busy putting smiley faces on the absolutely precious drawings that the class made in Instructional today. 

The Early Childhood Instructional Unit that I was assigned to was for the age fours of our Society, an age that I absolutelyloved. Children in general are undeniably gentle and sweet, with an enthusiastic outlook on life that I can't help but gravitate toward. And specifically in regards to my darling little age fours, their personalities were just beginning to form, which was an aspect of development that I felt so, so honored that The Elders trusted me to be a part of. 

If I'm being really honest, I cried at the Soul Mate Ceremony. 

And no, not just because I met my Soulmate who happened to be the hottest guy ever, but also due to my joy regarding The Elders' decision to place me in my dream Work Unit!

But then again, The Elders always know exactly what is best for everyone in our beautiful Society.

Crouching down to Suri's height, I gently reached out to tap her nose before I reached out to take her soft hands in mine, soothingly rubbing the top of them with my thumb.

"Now Miss Suri, we know that all of your nutritious Lunch Period meals are chosen for you every day until you turn into a biiig adult at age eighteen." I reminded her with a soft smile, turning my head toward the rest of my Instructional students who were sitting on the large rug in the middle of the room during their Free Play Period. "Right, Instructional?"

A disorganized chorus of "Yes, Princess Aria" sounded from all twenty of my children as they paused what they were doing to see what was happening at the front of the room. I half-turned my upper body toward them as I held steady to Suri's hands. 

"Good job my lovely beans!" I praised, my heart filling at the sight of all of their chubby little cheeks pointed my way, eyes sparkling with excitement. "And who made that very smart rule to make sure that everyone in our Society grows up really big and strong?"

"Our all-seeing Elders!" My Instructional chanted back, knowing the phrase like the back of their hands as everyone in our Society does. 

"But- but- but-... my mommy told me that when Princesses used to be real, that that they could do whateeeever they wanted!" Suri replied, her lip wobbling as she strained to contain the big emotions that threatened to burst out of her. "And so since you're a princess, then you can tell The Elders to give us cake!" She wailed, plopping down on the floor and crossing her arms and legs, little bottom lip jutting out as if someone just stole her favorite toy. 

"Oh, sweetie..." I tutted, sitting next to her and slipping my hands underneath her arms to gently slide her into my lap.

On the first day of Instructional, my adorable Instructional students could not exactly grasp the idea that I was not - in fact - a woman. The little ones had never seen a male with long hair before, as I was the first exception to the rule that The Elders had ever made in regards to our mandated hairstyles. And my little Suri was so fascinated with the fact that I apparently shared a likeness of a brunette princess in one of her storybooks, that she began calling me 'Princess Aria,' a nickname which quickly caught on with the rest of the class. 

"My adorable little Suri, no one has more power than our Elders." I said, a small smile tugging at my lips as I cradled her in my arms, rocking her back and forth as tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. "And we must all listen to them no matter what, right Instructional?" 

"Yes, Princess Aria!" My little lovelies repeated, their high-pitched voices sending a flutter of adoration straight to my heart.

My Instructional babies truly brought so much joy into my life.

"My little lovelies, I'm more than sure that The Elders are so proud of you all!" I praised, bouncing the still-sniffling Suri in my lap while I turned my attention back down to her. "So you see my little Suri, no matter if we get cake or not today, we must be grateful for alllll of the wonderful things that the elders generously provide for us!"

The small girl sniffled once more as she nodded, her skinny arms wrapping tightly around my torso and scrunched up face burying into the front of my shirt. "I'm sorry Princess Aria! I'm sorry Elders!" her squeaky little voice was muffled by fabric as I gently stroked her hair, making sure to go in the direction of her little puff so as not to ruin it.

However, before I could comfort her with my words, the Instructional Pod's PA system crackled alive with the monotonous droll of the voice that everyone in The Society was more than acquainted with;

"Attention, Society members; Lunch Period will commence in T-minus three minutes. Please report to your assigned Nutrition Pods at this time. Those who do not report to their assigned Nutrition Pod in the allotted time will be punished as Society laws regulate. Thank you, and remember, long live The Society of the People."

My Instructional students moved to stand as the announcement dissipated, toys long forgotten as they rushed to tidy their desks in preparation for Lunch Period. I, too, hurried to my desk, sliding the drawer open to grab the impeccably packed lunch that I'd packed this morning before scurrying to the door of the Instructional Pod. 

Tapping the control panel, the door immediately slid open and the anxious chatter of other Instructional Unit Workers and their students immediately filled the room as they hurried to obey the PA announcement.

Our Lunch Period transitions were always like this. 

It was often more than a notion to get all of our rowdy little ones to cooperate, which occasionally resulted in Instructors getting a strike on their record for their disobedience when their students did not report to their assigned Pods in time.

And occasionally... That strike was their very last. 

So, we worked harder, teaching our students to run as fast as their little legs could carry them so that we did not mess up the perfect schedules that our Society thrived under. 

"Alright my little sweeties, let's play our favorite game where we make the most perfect line in the history of all of Society!" I shouted over all of the other voices, swallowing hard in an effort to suppress the worried shake in my singsong tone. A trembling hand reached up to brush my hair behind my ear as I peeked around the corner of the door in the direction of the Nutrition Pods. 

The hall was as packed as the canned vegetable rations that we received every week as countless Instructors hurried their students down the corridor. The pitter-patter of little feet ricocheted off of the walls and rang incessantly in my eardrums, similar to the gunshots that haunted our dreams after public executions. 

"Good job my loves!" I exclaimed as I swiveled my head back into my Instructional Pod, my chest swelling with pride at the sight of my students in the perfect line in front of me, just as we'd practiced almost one-hundred times beforehand in preparation. "Now for the second part of our game! Stay close, hold onto your partner in front of you, and follow Princess Aria no matter what!" 

Another quick glance out of the doorway revealed a small pocket in the neverending foot traffic, one that I was determined to get us into. With a quivering breath, I tugged the tiny hand of my line leader, walking backwards and steadily merging us in with the others as we began the journey down the long hallway. 

My grip tightened on my little one as I whipped my head around, staying alert and monitoring for any potential hazards in our way. At this point, we likely only had about a minute left before Nutrition Period began, if the palpitations in my chest and the warning vibration of my travel tablet were any indication. 

Twenty tiny heads bobbled up and down as they toddled after me, eyes wide and oblivious to the level of urgency with which the adults around them moved. I was only able to release a breath that I didn't even realize I was holding when I spotted the Nutrition Pod that I was looking for, the number thirty one embedded into the white, curved metal wall beside it and a tall Enforcer guarding the door.

"Come inside, quickly!" I urged, eyes scanning the top of my little toddler chain to ensure all of mine were accounted for. ...Nineteen, twenty. 

A heavy breath of relief escaped me as I reached into my pocket, grabbing my travel tablet to tap it against the screen next to me in order to log our timely arrival. 

"I am just so proud of you all, my little minnows!" I exclaimed, all of my twenty babies crowding around my legs as we always did to celebrate a job well done. Crouching down to their level, I hugged those closest to me and gave a tap to the nose of all of the rest. "Now, go find your seats and I will be here to pick you up afterward, deal?" 

"Yes Princess Aria!" A series of giggles erupted as they went to disburse, knowing their assigned seats throughout the room, which were all based on certain dietary restrictions and growth trajectories. 

It was a flawless system, all expertly coordinated by our All-Seeing Elders.

I only began moving towards the Instructors' Nutrition Pod after I noted each and every one of my little ones were seated safely in front of their trays, the Pod of which was a smaller room off of our students' assigned Nutrition Pod. 

I could barely push the door open before I was being practically tackled, a head full of bright red hair shoved into my face as the figure squealed with delight. 

"Andrea, stop!" I giggled as the Instructor Nutrition Pod doors slid shut behind me, the spunky redhead who had become one of my closest friends over the past few weeks finally pulling back to grab my shoulders. 

Andrea was also in the Early Childhood Instructional Unit, however her students were a single age above mine. We bonded over our shared high levels of anxiety on our first day, feeling instantaneous relief at the idea of not being the only one who was slightly afraid of this momentous transition into adulthood that we were facing. 

"What do you mean stop?! It's not against Society rules for me to miss my bestie!" She smiled brightly as she continued to squeal, releasing one shoulder to pinch the flesh of my left cheek before she immediately began towing me over to our little, tucked away spot at the back of the room.

We each took our usual spots - her on the left and I on the right - at the little two-seater table, before dropping our lunch sacks on top of the laminated surface.

"Alright, spill! I can tell you have some juicy news for me, you're being way too quiet right now. Usually you're already running out of breath talking about the lunch you made for your Soulmate or getting way more excited than a normal person at that 'super stubborn wrinkle' you managed to get out of his uniform." She made air quotes with her two forefingers as she said the last part, eyes widening exaggeratedly in her typical, perky manner. 

My cheeks felt hot under the burden of her accusation, ducking my head down and attempting to feign innocence. I distracted myself by undoing the various clips holding together my metal lunch containers. 

"U-umm..." I stuttered out, wracking my brain to find a way out of this conversation without having to tell a lie, but coming up with nothing but air. "Nothing special happened this morning..." I started, but I was immediately countered with a freckled finger pointing directly in front of my face.

"Nuh-uh, you're not switching up the subject on me!" Andrea scooted her chair closer with a loud scrape, leaning her head further across the small table as her green eyes shined with interest. "I don't give a rat's ass about this morning, you and I both know that I want to know about your Introduction Day dinner!"

My cheeks grew even hotter as I thought of the events of last night, pressing a palm firmly against my stomach as it began to feel weird and fluttery. Despite the stress and anxiety that also accompanied the memories of last night, a stronger one dominated them all.

"Okay, okay!" I finally relented, biting the corner of my lip with nervousness as I leaned in closer to my friend, unable to keep my feet from swinging wildly with excitement underneath the table at the mere thought of saying it aloud. "We...We... Kissed!"

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Xoxo, Alex ❤️